Packing Struggles and Beyond

1/17/11: I have officially begun the packing process. My suitcase arrived in the mail today, my other one being irreparably broken (I didn't think it would be the best idea ever to lug a suitcase whose handle doesn't work all over Europe), so I spent some quality time making lots of piles and lists while Haley helpfully watched and told me yes or no when I held up articles of clothing I couldn't decide about.

I got vacuum bags for my stuff, so I'm not so worried about all it fitting now as I am worried about it being too heavy. And it is just hard to consolidate one's wardrobe into one suitcase, and even harder when you know that it will be all you can wear for five months.

I am going to keep a little packing log here. As of today, I have tentatively packed these piles that I made, as well as some of my necessaries, and it is at 33 pounds, without any coats, pajamas, toiletries or shoes. We'll see how this progresses over the course of the next week... (Also can we talk about that-- it is only one week and one day!! What?!)

1/22/11: Warning: Packing is known to cause irritability, frustration, exasperation and overwhelmedness. My mom and I just spent all evening packing my bags, and it ended up being fun, but I definitely almost panicked over where my jeans were and wanted to cry deciding which of two sweaters to bring. Well, not quite, but packing is definitely overwhelming. So, good news: All of my stuff fits in my suitcase and duffel and is not overweight. Bad news: I have like three times too much stuff in them. It is about 40 pounds right now, which is good, and I have managed to fit almost my entire wardrobe in it. Well, it's only about a third of my wardrobe, but I have almost all of the stuff I wear on a regular basis. So my mom, of course, said that she thought I had too much stuff. So I texted Kathryn and asked her how many shirts she was bringing and she said 5 tank tops, 7 t-shirts and 5 long-sleeved shirts. I have 21 t-shirts/tank tops and 19 long-sleeved shirts. I am not sure if this means that I am a master packer or that I have a major problem. So my task for tomorrow is to take out about half of that, and consolidate into just my suitcase. I guess it is going to be more of a struggle than I thought to travel light, haha! Well, at least I have three more days to figure it out. Wait what? Three days!?!

1/24/11: My duffel bag has been unpacked and put in my suitcase and my suitcase repacked, and then everything unpacked again and now the duffel bag has been reinstated as my carry-on. But the good news is I have about half as many long-sleeved shirts. Right now, my floor looks like an underwear store, or like victoria's secret and aerie had a child and it threw up everywhere. I dropped my suitcase on my foot yesterday, after which I decided to stop packing, since my duffel and I obviously weren't getting along. Now I have to deal with my undergarments and toiletries before finishing these two internship applications. So much to do! I can't believe I am leaving DAY AFTER TOMORROW. That makes it sound so soon.

I just weighed it and it's 48 pounds, and I am coming to the startling realization that I think I have packed everything aside from my toiletries. This is disconcerting because I feel as though I must be forgetting something. I will probably feel that way for the next two weeks, but I think I have gotten everything I need. I hope I have. Now I suppose the second-guessing and frantic searching begins. But first, lunch.

1/25/11: I think I will end this post now, since reading about my packing probably isn't all that interesting and because I think I am going to go crazy adding in all the little things over the course of the next 24 hours and weighing and re-weighing, but the final verdict is 47 pounds plus my duffel as a carry-on-- not too

bad, right?

Me nearly buried under my clothing... no, i did not take all of that-- and no, you can't see about half the clothes I have on the floor!

(and if anyone wants to teach me how to do picture captions, it would be much appreciated because all the instructions I found on google didn't work!)